Kelsey Jones, Senior Engagement Advisor in our Enforcement team recently spent time with Wales-based business, Concrete Canvas, hearing how they have valued the protection that intellectual property has provided them in the face of attempts to infringe on their products. Kelsey tells their story.
Concrete Canvas began with an ambitious challenge: to create inflatable concrete shelters for disaster relief. In trying to solve it, co-founders Will Crawford and Peter Brewin developed something with far wider potential – a new material that could change how concrete infrastructure is built, repaired and protected.
Today, Concrete Canvas is a successful Welsh business selling to more than 100 countries and employing around 80 to 90 people. Its story shows why intellectual property (IP) is not something to consider later. For some businesses, it becomes part of the foundation they build everything else on.
From university concept to global infrastructure solution
The material developed by Concrete Canvas is, in simple terms, concrete on a roll.
You can view Concrete Canvas patent GB2634752 here:
GB2634752 – Search for intellectual property – GOV.UK
It is a flexible fabric filled with dry concrete powder, with a waterproof membrane on one side. It can be unrolled over structures such as canals or ditches, sprayed with water, and within 24 hours it sets into a fibre-reinforced concrete layer.
That innovation has practical impact. Concrete Canvas explains that water scarcity is a major global issue, and that water transported through concrete canals can be lost through cracked lining. Its material can be used to line new and existing infrastructure, including canals and reservoirs, to provide a durable waterproof barrier.
This is not innovation for innovation’s sake. It is a practical product designed to solve practical problems, and because the idea was genuinely new, protecting it mattered from the start.
Building IP in from the beginning
Concrete Canvas was aware of the importance of IP “right from the get go”. The founders were supported by their university, which helped them access funding, advice and IP lawyers to file their first patent. That early decision proved important.
Will describes patent protection as essential, both in preventing copycat ideas and giving the business tools to enforce its rights when counterfeiters enter the market.
For many start-ups and SMEs, IP can feel abstract. A patent, trade mark or design right might seem like extra paperwork when you are focused on developing a product, gaining customers and keeping the business moving.
But Concrete Canvas shows why those protections become critical when success attracts attention.
Counterfeits threaten more than sales
For Concrete Canvas, infringement is not just about someone copying an idea. It is about the potential impact on customers, reputation and an entire category of material.
The business describes increasing issues with “bad actors” engaging in patent infringement, stealing trade marks, passing off and using its case studies and literature.
That matters because poor-quality imitations can damage a reputation built over 20 years and undermine confidence in the technology itself.
Fighting back strategically
Taking action against infringement can be difficult, especially for smaller companies. Concrete Canvas is clear that enforcement can be costly, time-consuming and complex, which is why its approach is strategic.
That strategy can include takedowns, warning letters, mediation, settlements and, where necessary, court action. The company notes that serious patent cases can last many years and cost significant sums, depending on the jurisdiction.
The business also works with a strategic IP information company to identify potential breaches of its patents and trade marks. Acting quickly helps reduce confusion among customers and others in the marketplace.
This is IP in action – not a certificate in a drawer, but part of daily business operations.
Hear from the Concrete Canvas team about their IP journey:
VIDEO https://youtu.be/erVKB9p57sg
Making IP everyone’s business
One of the strongest messages from the Concrete Canvas story is that IP management is not owned by one person or one department.
The company says embedding IP management and takedown operations into its business involves the whole organisation. Intelligence gathering may involve sales partners, business development managers and customers helping identify potential infringers across global markets.
That whole-business approach gives Concrete Canvas a stronger position when it needs to respond. For SMEs, it is a reminder that IP protection does not stop once a right is registered. It needs to be understood, monitored and managed as the business grows.
What other SMEs can learn
Concrete Canvas’ advice to start-ups and SMEs comes down to three practical points.
- Get advice: government guidance and webinars can help businesses understand the basics of IP.
- Develop an IP strategy: focus time and money on the protections that matter most.
- Stay flexible: review the strategy as threats and market conditions change.
There is no single route that works for every business. But where a business has something genuinely innovative, protection can be vital in helping prevent others from taking its ideas, knowledge and market position.
Why an IP strategy needs to be part of the growth plan
The Concrete Canvas journey is a powerful example of what can happen when innovation is protected early and managed strategically.
Its founders did not know at university that their idea would become a global business. But by recognising the value of IP from the beginning, they gave themselves tools to protect their invention, defend their reputation and keep control as the company scaled.
For any start-up or SME developing something new, the message is clear: protect your innovation early, think strategically about where to spend time and money, monitor the market as your business grows, act quickly when infringement creates confusion, and treat IP as part of your business operations.
Where to get support
If you are building a business around a new product, process or brand, understanding IP early can help you make informed decisions before problems arise.
The IPO offers free business guidance through the IP for Business platform, as well as support for businesses dealing with infringement through the IP crime and enforcement toolkit.
For start up businesses our https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/get-intellectual-property-right-step-by-step guide is a great starting point.
Keep an eye out on our events page for helpful classes on IP, in locations across the country. Find out more here Business events - GOV.UK
Final thought
Concrete Canvas shows that with the right advice, a clear IP strategy and a flexible approach, SMEs can protect not only what they have created, but the reputation and market confidence they have worked hard to build.
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